Wednesday, February 27, 2008

KU!

I did Fine Art in Kenyatta University, and right when I finish they revamp the syllabus to give the new kids what we wanted. Sigh.
So now you can study Film, Animation, acting and so forth all under the banner of the School of Visual Arts.

Interestingly, a lot of people in the creative industry have come from KU, from the poetess Caroline Nderitu to Reddykyulass, the comedians. (It might be that the conditions are such that you have to develop a sense of humour to cope! Naw, I'm just joking...)

Monday, February 25, 2008

The Many Faces of a Fan

So. Saturday. My first post was pretty clear on how excited I was about the meet. So why haven't I come back and posted all those stories aplenty? Possibly, because it was a humbling experience in one way and an enlightening one in another.

I've watched a few Ghibli movies, caught a series here and there, and I thought I enjoyed it enough to call myself a fan. Saturday was a reality check. The people there were fans. I'm just someone enjoying the ride.

And yet. I liked the whole feel of being amongst people discovering each other, starting conversations that held the promise of outlasting the meet, getting excited at finding that all elusive episode or series. People sharing a common interest. It was energetic and pleasingly self-absorbed. Like we'd created a space in a pocket of time to which we all belonged. I say 'we' because despite my "newbie-ness", I didn't feel entirely alienated.

People were cool. I got recommendations on what to watch, and someone even gave me a sorta, verbal pat-on-the-back for being brave enough to venture into anime :)

Do I see myself starting to avidly follow plots, memorising characters and watch the latest series? Not really. But that's probably because I've done that a lot with non-anime stuff and I'm looking for a new experience from this medium.

I'd love to attend another meet, but perhaps stay on for the actual discussion part (which I missed this time) and see how that goes. I'd probably sit and listen more than I usually do, simply because there's so so much to learn. And because I really don't do that well in crowds unless I know the people.

But there is promising news! I got goodies! And I gave away too - which felt surprisingly nice.

Verdict: Saturday was a pretty good idea for different reasons all around :)

(( And I don't think 'Gatherum' is a true word. ))

Sunday, February 24, 2008

Vocation = Vacation


If there's one thing that I think is important is to be enthusiastic about your work, to get all excited about your projects, and be able to say that what you do for work is what you'd do for fun, too.

On Saturday afternoon (and much later, for some) we were at the afore-mentioned "Anime Geekfest", and I know I had fun. (I wish I made Bleach for a living... :P) It was really good to meet new people who share the same interests, because so far the only mode of communication for these hardcore anime enthusiasts was a Facebook group. The Ichigo vs. Naruto arguments sound a lot funnier in person!

Hopefully this blog will similarly serve as a meeting point for fans and animators alike, a place to discuss and learn about what's going on in animation in Kenya today. (Yes, such a creature actually does exist!) And maybe at some point down the line we'll be able to host our own colourful Gatherum. A brother can dream...

(The picture above has nothing to do with the post, but Made You Look! Hehe. Ok, you can look at it as an example of a character design from one of those animators we were talking about. Inspired by a Cartoon Network overdose.)

Friday, February 22, 2008

So Many Firsts!

Hello World,

Since it's already been proven this is obviously on...

What a way to start a new venture!

This afternoon, we're having the first-ever anime geekfest in Nairobi! Possibly Kenya! (but I'm holding on to the dream that there is a small group of otaku in some remote corner of the country upholding the Cause of All Things Anime.)

So naturally, there will PLENTY of stories to share from all of us when we're done.

In the meantime, I'm off to check on my currency of the day (dvds stuffed with anime!)

Laterz.
bA.

Thursday, February 21, 2008

Is this thing on?

Microphone Checka, Swingin' Sword Lecture, nanananana Mr Metha...

Hehe. Sorry.